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Surface morphology, tribological properties and in vitro biocompatibility of nanostructured zirconia thin films

  • Engineering and Nano-engineering Approaches for Medical Devices
  • Original Research
  • Published:
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Abstract

Deposition of nanostructured and low-wear zirconia (ZrO2) thin films on the metallic component of a total joint implant is envisaged to reduce wear of the soft ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) counterpart. In this work, morphological surface features, wear resistance and in vitro-biocompatibility of zirconia thin films deposited by the novel Pulsed Plasma Deposition (PPD) method have been investigated. Film thickness, roughness and wettability were found to be strongly dependent on deposition gas pressure. Interestingly, wear rate of UHMWPE disks coupled to zirconia-coated titanium spheres was only poorly correlated to the contact angle values, while film roughness and thickness seemed not to affect it. Furthermore, wear of UHMWPE, when coupled with zirconia coated-titanium spheres, significantly decreased with respect to uncoated spheres under dry or NaCl-lubricated conditions; besides, when using bovine serum, similar results were obtained for coated and uncoated spheres. Finally, suitable mesenchymal stem and osteoblast cells adhesion, proliferation and viability were observed, suggesting good biocompatibility of the nanostructured zirconia films. Taken together, the results shown in this work indicate that zirconia thin films deposited by the PPD method deserve further investigations as low-wear materials for biomedical applications such as total joint replacement.

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Acknowledgments

The study was supported by the project “Nanostructured Coatings Enhancing Material Performances in Joint Arthroplasty” (project code: GR-2010-2312686), funded by the Italian Ministry of Health and co-funded by the Istituto Ortopedico Rizzoli. The authors would like to particularly thank Carmelo Carcasio for his support in mechanical manufacturing, Dr. Simone Sprio (Institute of Science and Technology for Ceramics, National Research Council of Italy) and Dr. Maria Cristina Maltarello (Laboratorio di Biologia Cellulare Muscoloscheletrica, Istituto Ortopedico Rizzoli) for providing the zirconia targets and the lubricants for the tribological tests, respectively.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Istituto Ortopedico Rizzoli, Laboratorio di NanoBiotecnologie (NaBi), via di Barbiano 1/10, 40136, Bologna, Italy

    M. Bianchi, A. Gambardella, M. Berni & A. Russo

  2. Institute of Science and Technology for Ceramics, National Research Council of Italy, via Granarolo 64, 48018, Faenza, Italy

    S. Panseri, M. Montesi & A. Tampieri

  3. Dipartimento di Ingegneria dell’Informazione, Università degli Studi di Brescia, via Branze 38, Brescia, Italy

    N. Lopomo

  4. Istituto Ortopedico Rizzoli, Laboratorio di Biomeccanica e Innovazione Tecnologica, via di Barbiano 1/10, 40136, Bologna, Italy

    M. Marcacci

  5. Dipartimento di Scienze Biomediche e Neuromotorie-DIBINEM, Università di Bologna, via Zamboni 33, 40126, Bologna, Italy

    M. Marcacci

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  1. M. Bianchi
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  2. A. Gambardella
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  3. M. Berni
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  9. A. Russo
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Correspondence to M. Bianchi.

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Bianchi, M., Gambardella, A., Berni, M. et al. Surface morphology, tribological properties and in vitro biocompatibility of nanostructured zirconia thin films. J Mater Sci: Mater Med 27, 96 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10856-016-5707-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10856-016-5707-4

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